Termination of reproduction in nonhuman and human female primates

M., T.; Sellen, Daniel; Parish, Amy; Frank, Rebecca E.; Brown, D. M.; Voland, Eckart; Mulder, M.

doi:10.1007/bf02735478

Cited by 123 publications

(121 citation statements)

References 24 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

114

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…2B) seem to be irrelevant to fertility. This apparent lack of reproductive senescence sensu stricto in P. edwardsi conforms to earlier studies on lemurs showing no gradual decline in fertility with age (15,31). Measuring fertility alone, however, may not capture all aspects of reproductive senescence.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 83%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Dental senescence in a long-lived primate links infant survival to rainfall

King

Arrigo-Nelson

Pochron

et al. 2005

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

206

268

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Primates tend to be long-lived, and, except for humans, most primate females are able to reproduce into old age. Although aging in most mammals is accompanied by dental senescence due to advanced wear, primates have low-crowned teeth that wear down before old age. Because tooth wear alters crown features gradually, testing whether early dental senescence causes reproductive senescence has been difficult. To identify whether and when low-crowned teeth compromise reproductive success, we used a 20-year field study of Propithecus edwardsi, a rainforest lemur from Madagascar with a maximum lifespan of >27 years. We analyzed tooth wear in three dimensions with dental topographic analysis by using Geographical Information Systems (GIS) technology. We report that tooth wear exposes compensatory shearing blades that maintain dental function for 18 years. Beyond this age, female fertility remains high; however infants survive only if lactation seasons have elevated rainfall. Therefore, low-crowned teeth accommodate wear to a point, after which reproductive success closely tracks environmental fluctuations. These results suggest a tooth wear-determined, but rainfall-mediated, onset of reproductive senescence. Additionally, our study indicates that even subtle changes in climate may affect reproductive success of rainforest species.lemur ͉ longevity ͉ wild population ͉ Ranomafana Park ͉ life history

show abstract

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 83%

“…Although only humans outlive their reproductive senescence substantially, many primates, and mammals in general, show declining reproductive success in old age (15,16), suggesting that dental senescence could be hypothesized to be a factor in reproductive senescence.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Dental senescence in a long-lived primate links infant survival to rainfall

King

Arrigo-Nelson

Pochron

et al. 2005

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

206

268

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…By their mid-30s, chimpanzees in the wild are physically frail, have heavily worn teeth, experience weight loss, and display reduced activity level (29,48). Nonetheless, females can retain fertility almost until the end of life, despite indications of lengthened cycles and oocyte depletion (48,49). Somatic aging in humans progresses more slowly than in chimpanzees (50), yet reproductive senescence in women, which is marked by menopause, occurs well before the end of life, at ∼50 y of age (51).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Aging of the cerebral cortex differs between humans and chimpanzees

Sherwood

Gordon²,

Allen

et al. 2011

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

104

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Several biological changes characterize normal brain aging in humans. Although some of these age-associated neural alterations are also found in other species, overt volumetric decline of particular brain structures, such as the hippocampus and frontal lobe, has only been observed in humans. However, comparable data on the effects of aging on regional brain volumes have not previously been available from our closest living relatives, the chimpanzees. In this study, we used MRI to measure the volume of the whole brain, total neocortical gray matter, total neocortical white matter, frontal lobe gray matter, frontal lobe white matter, and the hippocampus in a cross-sectional sample of 99 chimpanzee brains encompassing the adult lifespan from 10 to 51 y of age. We compared these data to brain structure volumes measured in 87 adult humans from 22 to 88 y of age. In contrast to humans, who showed a decrease in the volume of all brain structures over the lifespan, chimpanzees did not display significant age-related changes. Using an iterative age-range reduction procedure, we found that the significant aging effects in humans were because of the leverage of individuals that were older than the maximum longevity of chimpanzees. Thus, we conclude that the increased magnitude of brain structure shrinkage in human aging is evolutionarily novel and the result of an extended lifespan.

show abstract

“…1) showed, the decline of fertility occurs long before and at a much higher rate than any other physiological trait. Although recent studies show that humans are not the only species that show a substantial remaining life-span after the cessation of reproductive capabilities (Packer, Tatar, and Collins 1998; see also Austad 1997) they are one of the few higher order taxa and they are probably the only primates who show this feature regularly and in "nonprovisioned" conditions (Pavelka and Fedigan 1991;Caro et al 1995;Judge and Carey 2000).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%